Dysentery Outbreak in Mobius
by yinboo
Summary: The dreaded disease has struck the city of Mobius. As if that were bad enough, a serial killer is on the loose who may be connected to the virulent strain, and whose capture may be the key to preventing the city from falling into total disarray. Can Team Chaotix catch Sonic the Hedgehog's murderer?
1. Prologue

**Sonic the Hedgehog opens his eyes. Fading in and out of consciousness and with blurred vision, he is unsure of the reality being presented to him. **

**Where is he? **

**He is lying on the cold, ceramic tiled floor of the bathroom in his apartment. He drags his heavy body to the sink counter, pulling himself up brusquely. **

"**Ugh, I feel like shit."**** He says aloud, clutching his forehead. He is running a high fever and sweating like he had never before, and it is pouring down the sides of his face and into the sink. **

**Suddenly, without warning, he begins to retch uncontrollably. **

"**Oh no, I'm gonna…" ****Before he can even complete the thought, though, it happens. **

**He starts to vomit. The noxious bodily fluids torrent out of his mouth like a hose under pressure suddenly turned on. Before long, chunks of what he had for breakfast are now filling the sink to the brim. The surge stops for a moment, and he gasps to recollect his breath. **

"**Oh my God, what's happening to me…?" ****He manages to blurt out. He looks into the mirror over the sink and at his reflection – just yesterday, he looked perfectly healthy. But now, his skin had a sickly, pallid tone and traces of vomit were visibly lining his lips.**

**I have to call somebody, 9-11 or… **

**Coincidentally, his cell phone starts ringing. **

**However, checking his pockets, he realizes that it is not on his person, but the sound seemed to be coming from the adjacent bedroom. **

**Holding back another wave of vomit, Sonic steadily makes his way to the ringing phone. **

**Whoever it was, they could help him. They **_**had **_**to. **

**Oh my God, my head… He collapses unto his knees, the crippling power of his headache. So, he is reduced to crawling, the rest of the way to his bedside dresser, where the ringing is heard at its loudest.**

**Clutching his head with one hand, he uses the other to shuffle through the miscellaneous items that line his dresser. A pack of cigarettes, a bobble-head of himself and an open pack of double mint gum are thrown onto the floor in the process. A photograph of him, Tails and Knuckles standing together and smiling hits the floor and shatters with a loud ****CRACK****. It is when he sends his alarm clock flying with a swing of his arm that he finally locates the phone, and answers it.**

**There is no time for a casual exchange of hellos. **

"**Help! I can't stop vomiting! Get an ambulance, I can't —" ****Sonics shouts into the phone, only to be cut off by the continued flow of vomit. He barely manages to move the phone away from his mouth in time. **

**Tails happens to be on the other end, and he responds, just loud enough for Sonic to hear with the phone away from his ear, ****"Uhh, Sonic, what the hell? I'll call 9-11! Hold on man, I'll be right there too."**

**Sonic nods pathetically, unable to vocalize a response. He throws the phone away and drops to the floor. **

**My head feels like it's going to explode… **

**He rolls in his own puke screaming in pain, and crying in it. He felt hopeless, like he was going to die, as the nightmare continued, seemingly without end.**

**I can't give up, though. Not here, not now...**

**He was like a sponge that had been left to soak in a tub full of vomit, getting up. As he walked, he would leave a trail of vomit on the floor behind him wherever he went. **

**Sonic was in a delirious state of mind, and this affected his sense of direction. Lumbering about his bedroom, he bumps into his bed, crashes into his wardrobe, then finally trips and rolls into his closet. He pukes some more in there; decorating the walls and the clothes around him in a cascade of green filth. **

"**You don't look so well, Sonic." **

**Sonic whips his head around to see a person standing there and with that one look, he knew he was not going to survive long enough for the ambulance to arrive.**

…

**His name is Sonic the hedgehog and he is fated to be the first victim of the Dysentery outbreak in Mobius.**


	2. ACT ONE: Part 1

**What had initially been the scene of a medical emergency has escalated into the scene of a gruesome murder.**

**The street in front of the ****Pink House ****apartment complex has been blocked off with yellow 'police' tape. Three squad cars and an ambulance are in the area, sirens flashing, and alerting nearby residents that tomorrow's news was in the making. Tails had just arrived on the scene; he has no choice but to join the throngs of people being held back by the tape. He is pacing frantically. He had been blocked off from the chaos just like everyone else – **_**he**_**, Sonic's best friend. **

_**How dare they not let me in?**_

"**What the **_**fuck**_**?!"**** The distressed Tails shouts, directing his rage at a nearby fire hydrant, with a kick that only made the great pain he felt even worse. It was the pain that came with being powerless to help his best friend, suffering only a flight of steps away. He drops to the ground, unto his knees. ****"Sonic is dying in there, and they won't..." **

**A knuckled hand grasps his shoulder; the hand of Knuckles the Echidna.**

"**You're lucky, bro." ****He says, helping Tails back unto his feet.**

"**Lucky? What the hell are you talking about?" ****Tails is beside himself with anger. ****"Sonic needs my help**_**!**_**"**

"**There won't be any help for him now, man." ****Knuckles looks grim; with a faraway, almost dazed expression on his face when he says to Tails, ****"Just be glad that you didn't get here before me."**

"**But Sonic's my best friend, I—"**

**Knuckles grabs tails by the shirt collar, and pulls him up to his face. ****"Shut the hell up, you have no idea**_**, **_**man!" ****He barks at Tails with a crazed look in his eyes, spitting in his face. ****"Blood and vomit **_**everywhere, **_**from the bathroom to the kitchen, it isn't a fucking joke, man!"**

"**Put him down, Knuckles." ****Somebody says. The two look to see it is Espio, on the other side of the police blockade. ****"You two getting into a fight over it won't bring Sonic back."**** He pulls out a cigarette and lights it, then placing it into his mouth. ****"Well aren't you a big shot, Espio?"**** Knuckles grumbles, but concedes, recognizing that the chameleon is right.**

**Espio cocks his head at Tails. ****"Never in my fifteen years on the force, have I witnessed such a brutal scene."**** He takes a moment to exhale, shaking his head disapprovingly. ****"We've had some guys literally run out of there and call it a day, with what we're dealing with."**

"**What do you mean? What **_**are **_**we dealing with here?"**** Tails ask innocently, looking between the Espio and Knuckles expectantly. It is not as though he missed the signs in what Knuckles and Espio were saying, though. **

**He just simply could not believe it. **

**Espio must have picked up on this, because he hesitates before he answers, ****"We're dealing with a case of cold-blooded murder." **

**Murder?**__

**There was no denying it now.**__**Tails' head begins to swim. He gasps aloud and crumbles under the weight of the moment. Sonic was murdered? Why? What…?**__**Adrenaline floods his system in that instant. In one sudden burst of energy, Tails leaps over the police tape, the blockade, and past Espio. He weaves past policemen lunging to stop him, and makes it through the front door of the apartment complex. He dashes up the stairs, at full speed. **

**1F…2F…3F…**

**Tails runs without stopping for rest until he reaches the fourth floor. There, he takes a second to catch his breath, then places an unsteady hand unto the handle of the door that separated the stairwell from the floor's main hallway. **

**Sonic murdered? There's no way.**__**He thinks reassuringly, letting out an exasperated sigh as he turns the handle and pushes the door open. **

**Sonic can't die, he's my best friend.**__**Tails tries to maintain his composure and look calm, as he makes his way down the hall. It would hardly matter, though, since the floor had long been evacuated by the police.**

**Nobody can take his place if he died.**__**He begins a brisk walk, becoming more worried. **

**Sonic died, and it's because I didn't get here fast enough. His walk has turned into an all-out sprint within six seconds, and he reaches Sonic's front door gasping for breath.**

**He rips off the police tape blocking the doorway and steps inside.**

**Squick.**

**He looks down, having stepped in some unknown liquid. It is green and slimy. It is vomit but – Sonic's vomit. Tails wails in disgust and falls to the ground with a **_**splash **_**of red. He scrambles back unto his feet and looks down at where he had fallen. He sees his reflection in a pool of freshly drawn blood. Cringes, he starts to mumble incoherently to himself. Recalling, what Knuckles had said earlier, and it makes him feel nauseous.**

**Sonic, where are you?**

**In true narrative fashion, it is then that his eyes fall upon the figure seated at the couch set against the wall on the far side of the room…**

…

**His name is Miles Tails Prower and what he has just seen will haunt him for the rest of his life.**


	3. ACT ONE: Part 2

"**The body of Sonic the Hedgehog was found in his apartment at approximately eighteen thirty-two hours yesterday." **

**It is the day after Sonic's murder, and Espio has returned to the Chaotix detective's office to turn in his report. **

**He throws a small stack of pictures taken at the scene unto the table.**

**Vector the crocodile picks the first one in the stack up and appraises it, showing a picture of Sonic's maimed corpse positioned in an upright 'sitting' position on his living room couch. He grunts audibly - it was not a pretty picture at all. **

**Espio continues, ****"He suffered multiple laceration wounds to the chest and abdomen, along with visible indication on the skull that he also suffered a heavy blunt attack from a hammer-like object."**

**Vector peers at Espio from over the photo. ****"Did you have him sent in for an autopsy?"**

"**Yes, Charmy's busy with that. But what were really curious about here is…" ****Espio prods at one of the photographs on the table, so that it slides across the surface for Vector to see. He picks it up. It is a photograph taken of Sonic's open closet. ****"Is this…vomit? And it's all over the walls and floor?"**

"**Yes. I want us to know, most of all, if this had anything to do with our hedgehog's untimely death." ****Espio leans against the wall, pulling his jacket over his shoulder. ****"It may turn out to be a link to future cases, if this goes serial."**

"**Vomit? Really?" ****Vector scratches his head, placing the photo down. ****"This counts as a first."**

"**You won't believe the looks on the faces of the rookies."**** Espio says, grinning slightly, ****"Hmm, murder in Mobius, I can't remember the last time."**

"**Try dysentery in Mobius!" ****Charmy suddenly flies into the room, knocking into Vector's desk, throwing blood from off of his gloves and coat everywhere about the room. This includes unto Vector's face.**

"**Jesus Christ Charmy, did your prescription run out again or what?" ****The crocodile growls, and punches him.**

"**Sonic had dysentery! He was already dying when he was killed!" ****He jumps up and down, while pointing to the open door. ****"He was vomiting all over the place! Blood in his stool!"**** Charm is ecstatic. Vector and Espio exchange confused glances. **

"**Calm down, and tell us more about this dysentery." ****Vector says.**

…

**His name is Knuckles the Echidna, and he is on his way to the **_**BINGO Highway**_**, to see Shadow.**

**The casino is jam-packed - it is a Saturday evening, after all, and the place is far enough from the epicenter of Sonic's grizzly murder for people to be able to go on normally with their lives. Knuckles could not, though, with what he saw the night before still fresh on his mind. He needed answers, and he had a feeling that Shadow the hedgehog, longtime rival of Sonic, would be able to provide some.**

"**Entry is not permitted." ****Omega declares to Knuckles, in a magnificent mechanical monotone, when he tries to enter the back room.**

"**I'm here to see Shadow, and I won't be stopped by a fucking toaster like you." ****Knuckles replies, not willing to back down so easily.**

**The rambunctious atmosphere of the casino: ringing arcade machines, roulettes being rolled, and losses being cursed, is not enough to drown out Knuckles' will. If words did not work, he had other ways of communicating and tonight, he was more than ready to make use of them.**

"**Remove yourself. Or be eliminated." **

"**Who is it, Omega?" ****A voice calls out from the depths of the back room. Omega turns slightly, as if to respond. Bad move. **

**Knuckles lands a clean uppercut on the machine and then in one swift follow-up, grabs him by the head, and rams it into the ground. And I do mean, literally, into the ground.**

"**You better haul your ass out here; I'm here to talk to you about Sonic!"****Knuckles shouts, not caring about the attention he was gathering from the casino patrons. The room had become deathly quiet within seconds. Omega makes little resistance to proper himself, so Knuckles remains holding him down; waiting. **

**If he doesn't come out here soon, I'll ram this asshole's head-**

**Before he can finish that thought, though, a black figure begins to emerge from the back room. This creature, he looked like Sonic except he was black all over, and with bright red stripes along his spikes. He glares down at Knuckles with fierce, blood-red eyes.**

"**So, what **_**about **_**Sonic?" ****He asks, arms crossed and chin in the air.**


	4. ACT ONE: Part 3

**His name is Shadow the Hedgehog, and Knuckles is certain he is guilty of murdering Sonic.**

**Knuckles stands up, and then walks over to Shadow. He gets close enough to smell the marijuana and bourbon alive on the black hedgehog's breath. Omega makes an attempt to subdue Knuckles, grabbing his leg from on the ground, but Shadow throws his palm out, halting him. He looks back at Knuckles.**

"**You got something to say, echidna?"**

"**You killed Sonic, you fucking asshole!" ****Knuckles shouts angrily, ****"I'll take you out!"**

**Shadow shoves Knuckles away. ****"I don't know what you're talking about, fool."**

**Grinding his teeth, Knuckles snarls – testosterone flooding his system. ****"Cut the crap, I **_**know **_**you did it. You've had it out for Sonic for years. You're real fast, Shadow, it's true, you ran in there, made chop suey out of him, and left before the ambulance could arrive." ****He shoves Shadow back, with nearly enough force to knock him off his feet.**

"**Is this some kind of a sick joke?" ****Shadow says. They begin to circle one another. People crowd around to watch, but silently. The two are sizing one another up; Knuckles waiting for the opportunity to strike, Shadow watching for the chance to make a run for it – an angry Knuckles is not somebody you want to tangle with.**

"**You can play stupid all you want, but you're still gonna get throttled!" ****Knuckles lunges at Shadow with a downward swing, which he easily weaves and dodges. Then, Shadow unleashes a roundhouse kick but Knuckles blocks it, and responds with a punch to the gut. Shadow collapses like a pile of sticks from the impact. Grinning, Knuckles rears back his leg and kicks him where he lay. He does so over, and over, and over again. Shadow can merely cross his arms over his chest to minimize the damage, but even still, the attacks are brutal.**

"**Knuckles, what in the hell—"****A female voice calls out, causing Knuckles to pause and look up, in alarm. Shadow looks up too, and sees that it is Rouge, who had been in the back room with him. Her assessment of the situation does not take long.**

"**Omega, subdue target: Knuckles!"**** She points at Knuckles, and the robot springs into action, loyal to its orders. It puts Knuckles into an arm lock, catching him by surprise.**

"**This bucket of bolts won't stop me!" ****Knuckles wrestles with Omega, but robot does not shift. ****"And neither will you, Rouge! That fucker Shadow is going to pay!"**

_**Click**_**.**

**Rouge pulls out a handgun and loads it. Knuckles abruptly ceases his struggling. The surrounding crowd begins to disperse in a panic, and people are running out of the casino.**

"**Listen here, Knuckles." ****Rouge places the nose of the gun unto the center of his forehead. Sweat gathers profusely, on his brow. ****"I know you aren't the gambling type." ****She settles a finger unto the trigger, and brings her face close to his. ****"So how's about you get going, while your **_**good character **_**is still intact." **

**Time seems to slow down, and the background seems to fade away. Knuckles and Rouge are locked in a deathly stare.**

…

**On the other side of town, Tails is fiddling with his IPhone vacantly. He had been crying earlier, and indeed, for much of the morning, but by the time the sun had set he was fresh out of tears. He opens up the Facebook app, thinking he should post something about Sonic's death, but decides not to. All this did was call back to his mind the image of Sonic's bloody corpse. How it had been sitting there, on the couch, as he might have on any ordinary day.**

**There will never be an ordinary day again, though. It will never be the same without Sonic.**__**Tails thinks hopelessly, sighing.**

**He examines the log of a conversation between him and Knuckles earlier. What had begun as a trip down memory lane: of how they first met Sonic, the things they missed most about Sonic, and the games they had starred with him in, gradually turned into a talk more serious. The conversation climaxed with Knuckles expressing his determination to find out who killed Sonic, and how he was suspicious of Shadow in particular. The last thing he said was that he had something to care of, after which he logged off.**

**Tails smiles to himself, thinking, ****he's probably at BINGO Highway right now.**__**He would have said something to stop him from doing anything reckless but, after all, an angry Knuckles is not somebody you want to tangle with.**

**He closes the log with Knuckles and opens the one directly above it – marking the fourth time he had checked this one today. A single tear manages to form in his eyes, and it glides down his cheek flawlessly. For, this was the last conversation he had shared with Sonic, the night before he was murdered. There would always be a tear to spare.**

…

**His name is Miles Tails Prower, and he knows for a fact that Shadow did not kill Sonic, but he will cry himself to sleep tonight wishing he knew who did. **


	5. ACT ONE: Part 4

**Shadow the hedgehog is beneath the Mobius City Bridge, by the shore of the river that separates the west side of the city from the east on a calm, breezy Thursday night. It is the night before Sonic's murder and he is alone, but, expecting somebody. **

**He takes his cell out and checks the message again – yes, he said underneath the bridge at eight.**__**He checks the time again; he had been waiting here for thirty minutes. **

"**Where is he?" ****Shadow runs his hands through his spikes, agitated. He walks around in circles, becoming anxious. ****"This isn't the type of thing he should be playing around with, and end up coming late." ****He kicks up the sand; it gets blown away by the light breeze, twinkling like shards of crystal, or the stars that were absent from the city sky.**

"**Hey Shadow, I'm here." ****Shadow hears someone say from behind him. He turns to look, and can just make out the shape of a person walking down the hill toward him, from the street up ahead. Shadow throws his arms out as if to say it's about time, and puts his phone away.**

"**Sonic!"**

…

**His name is Shadow the Hedgehog, and he has just woken up since losing consciousness after his encounter with Knuckles, no more than an hour ago. **

**He recognizes immediately that he is now in his apartment on the East side of town, lying in bed. In trying to sit up, he feels a great pain in his chest and reactively grips it, groaning. He notices that his chest is wrapped with bandages. Not long after, the door opens, and Rouge walks in, carrying a wide bowl of hot water and a rag. She stops when she sees that he is awake.**

"**How are you feeling?" ****She asks, in an obvious sarcastic tone.**

"**It's like I got hit by a truck, multiple times." ****Shadow says, moaning. **

"**Maybe if you weren't so stoned before, you would have been better able to defend yourself."**** Rouge scoffs, dipping the rag into the bowl repeatedly. **

"**Well, it's not like I expected to get into a fight with Knuckles today."**

"**I didn't expect any trouble today either, but I **_**still **_**brought my gun with me." ****Rouge walks over to Shadow's bedside. ****"You should feel lucky. It certainly took care of Knuckles earlier." **

"**You shot him?!" ****Shadow yells, rising up a little. It hurt. Rouge gently places a hand unto his chest, and lays him back down. **

"**Oh come on Shadow, are you really that high?" ****She slaps the wet rag unto his forehead and spreads it out, for complete coverage. ****"It only scared him away, hun, the way I was hoping it would." **

**Shadow gazes up at his ceiling. It is covered with posters promoting his favorite music bands: **_**Dir en Grey**_**, **_**Brokencyde**_** and **_**Linkin Park**__**, **_**they were all up there. Oh how he wished to just throw on his headphones, pop in one of their CDs, and completely forget about today ever happening. **

**Or if I could forget about yesterday too, I would. He thinks, sadly.**

"**Is it still hurting, while you're lying down?" ****Rouge asks Shadow, noticing his eyebrows tightening, as if due to some pain he was experiencing. He shakes his head.**

"**I don't think this is a pain that will ever go away, Rouge." ****He responds, and turns his head away from her. He shuts his eyes.**

…

**Meanwhile, on the other side of Mobius, Espio has returned to the crime scene to check for more clues. Charmy is in tow, buzzing at a respectful distance behind the seasoned investigator. They are in Sonic's kitchen, the checker tiles on the floor stained by a trail of drying blood and bile leading from the bedroom.**

"**So Espio, why did you bring me with you today? I thought it was just my job to cut the dead bodies open."**** Charmy asks, but is ignored by Espio, who is at the moment observing the kitchen sink. At Espio's request, the bee had come with his hands full of empty bottles. Charmy glances at said bottles, and then shoots Espio a questioning look, curious of their intended purpose.**

"**Well, you said that dysentery comes out of drinking contaminated water, right?" ****Espio asks.**

**Charmy opens his mouth as if to answer, but stops midway, his eyes widening with the epiphany he has in that moment. ****"So you want to collect samples of Sonic's tap water?"**

"**Yes Charmy, and not only his tap water, but samples from any water source he may have come in contact with, prior to his death." ****He turns the tap on, and beckons for Charmy to hand him one of the bottles. **

"**You think it has something to do with the murder, then?" ****He asks as he hands over a bottle.**

"**Let's just say I don't think the first recorded case of dysentery in Mobius occurring hand-in-hand with one of the most brutal murders in the history of Mobius is entirely coincidental." ****Having filled up the bottle, Espio covers it and hands it back to Charmy. ****"I want you to take it back to HQ and examine its contents. See if it has what we're looking for."**

"**What about you?"**** He asks, before exiting the front door to the apartment.**

"**I have some more business to attend to here." ****Espio says, walking around the counter that separates the kitchen from the living room, into the area where Sonic's body was found and where the highest concentration of blood and vomit could be found. The vomit was so caked unto the floor here that footprints were able to form in it, directed toward the front door. **

**His eyes focus unto one footprint in particular.**

…

**His name is Espio the chameleon, and by this time tomorrow, he will have made two defining insights into the case of Sonic's murder.**


	6. ACT ONE: Part 5

**Knuckles the echidna is not happy. **

**It was not just because of the affair with Shadow at the casino either, but that, if anything, it made him realize something. He had realized that he needed to find the truth about who murdered Sonic himself – he was not content with waiting on the Mobius police force or even the Chaotix detectives – no, he would have to take matters into his own hands.**

**Luckily, he knew just who to turn to for some much needed assistance.**

**He had been driving his rusty pickup all Sunday morning, to a location in a far corner of West Mobius, **_**Station Square**_**. Decrepit, over-populated tenements line the narrow street he is on. A Mexican market is opening up for the day, and the scent of corn tortillas being crisped in oil is distinct, overpowering, even, and combined with the ever present smell of carbon monoxide that plagued the area, gave the area a unique scent makeup. **

**This was the ghetto, make no doubt about it, but to Knuckles it is home sweet home. He passes by a basketball court with only one hoop that he recognized from his childhood based on the graffiti still scrawled across the tarmac. This meant he was close, so he pulls over – making sure to lock his windows – and sets out on foot. **

…

**Thirty minutes later, Knuckles is knocking at a door on the fourth floor of an apartment complex.**

"**Come on, I don't have time for this. It's important." ****He knocks on the door harder, but there is still no answer. ****"Alright, I'm coming in!"**

**He rams against the door with his shoulder, and it opens easily. **

**He enters into a plain living room; with only a small dresser to one corner and a sleeping mattress that was laid out on the floor in the center of the room. Of course, Knuckles is not here to make observations about the interior design of the place. He was more interested in the person sitting, cross-legged, on the sleeping mattress, staring intently into the screen of a laptop. **

"**Jesus, Chris, It's dark as shit in here."**** Knuckles grumbles and strides across the room. He throws open the curtains that were covering the two windows and turns around. He is shocked a little by the appearance of the boy looking up at him.**

**Chris Thorndyke had changed since Knuckles last saw him. His orange-brown hair is grown out to his shoulders, greasy and unwashed. He blinks his eyes in the wake of the light – large, round eyes with bloodshot pupils and thick purple bags underneath them, and he holds out two bony arms in an attempt to shield them from the sunlight. **

**Glancing to the right of Chris, he sees two half-open plastic bags on the ground next to each other, both filled with a white powdery substance.**

**You have got to be kidding me.**

"**Hey, Knuckles." ****Chris greets him, slurring his words slightly. ****"I haven't seen you in forever."**

"**Chris." ****Knuckles crosses his arms. He massages his temples with one hand, trying hard to retain his composure. ****"Please tell me that isn't cocaine on the floor next to you."**

**Chris opens his mouth wide and peers at Knuckles, as though stuck on what to say.**

"**I need you Chris man, but look at you!" ****Knuckles turns his back and punches a wall. ****"Coke? For real? What the hell happened to you?"**

"**It's baking soda."**** Chris says, scratching at his unshaven chin.**

"**What?"**

**How is this kid even still alive, then?**

"**I can't afford the real stuff anymore. So I use baking soda."**** He begins to dip his hand into the bag closest to him, but Knuckles kicks the bag away. He pauses. Then, he reaches for the other bag. This time, Knuckles stomps down on his hand. Hard.**

"**What the hell was that for, asshole?!"**** Chris screams. ****"It's your fault I'm like this, for leaving me behind in the first place!"**

**Knuckles's face darkens, and he looks down. He lifts his foot and Chris backs away from him, rubbing his injured hand, his face flushed red. He stabs a finger at the Echidna, and continues his angry rant. ****"You said we would leave this place together. But you lied. We were gonna take on the world together!" **

**Shut the hell up, Chris.**

"**It was gonna be you, me, Tails, and Sonic. That's what you said!" **

"**Sonic is dead." ****Knuckles says, simply.**

"**It was going to…" ****Chris trails off. What Knuckles said slowly begins to process in his inebriated mind. ****"What did you say? Did you just say what I thought you said?"**

"**Sonic was murdered, two days ago." ****Knuckles walks away from Chris, arms propped on his hips. Chris is horrorstruck, and can only gape in disbelief. As off-kilter as he is, the impact of the news was still groundbreaking. **

"**I think you can safely guess about why I'm here, now."**

…

**His name is Miles Tails Prower, and he has invited a grieving Amy Rose to his suburban home for a meal. Little does he know, he will be getting much more out of this experience than he previously bargained for.**

"**Tails, I can't thank you enough for having me today." ****Amy says, as Tails closes the front door behind her. ****"I honestly haven't left my house since I heard the news." **

"**Err, no problem. I haven't left my house in a while either." ****He shrugs, and then coaxes her into the kitchen.**

**The sweet smell of a late breakfast fills the kitchen. Tails directs Amy to a room attached to the kitchen, the dining room, and pulls out a chair for her at a gleaming ebony table. **

"**I guess being a system manager at **_**Eggtech**_** has its perks, after all, huh Tails?"**** Amy says, and rubs the lean surface of the table, looking impressed. Tails nods limply, and ducks into the kitchen, to get the food. **

…

**If he had stayed in that room for a second longer, Tails might have noticed a change in the pink hedgehog's demeanor. Chances are he would have seen the sudden, sinister sparkle in her eyes.**

**...**

**His name is Miles Tails Prower, and he is going to lose his virginity by lunchtime.**


	7. ACT ONE: Part 6

**Shadow the Hedgehog is walking the streets of **_**Central Square, **_**thinking about Sonic. The fact that he had been the last person to talk to him weighed heavily on his mind, and he cannot help recall the memory of that night at the bridge.**

…

"**Sonic, why are you so damn late? I was just going to leave." ****Shadow huffs and crosses his arms. Sonic attempts to smile, but then frowns, and he turns away from Shadow. **

"**You look nervous."**

"**Well, what do you expect?" ****Sonic shrugs a little, and stuffs his hands into his pockets. ****"I've never done **_**this **_**before."**

**The silence that follows is tense. Shadow looks Sonic over, unimpressed. He then sighs. ****"You did come, though. And that's more than I expected."**

**Sonic glances at him a little, smiling timidly. **

**Cars whizz by on the street overhead, producing a consistent **_**swish **_**sound and drafts that occasionally blows article of urban litter down the hill, to where the two hedgehogs are standing. Nobody from the street could possibly see the two standing in the shadow of the great bridge, however, so it gave them a feeling of complete isolation. It is a feeling that would be nearly impossible to achieve anywhere else, in the sprawling city of Mobius. **

**I have it set up exactly the way he wanted it, and he still refuses to make a move.**__**Shadow thinks, glaring at Sonic.**

"**I can't do this." ****Sonic grumbles, and is about to walk back up the hill when Shadow grabs his arm, stopping him. ****"Let me go, Shadow! I told you already, I'm not—"**

**This is my only chance.**

**Shadow the hedgehog pulls Sonic close to him, and they lock lips. It felt strange for Shadow, because it was something he had long dreamt about, and had never thought would actually happen in real life. Sonic, who had at first tried to move away from him, becomes still. Feeling confident, Shadow wraps his arms around him, and Sonic does the same. **

**It was the most beautiful experience of Shadow's life.**

…

**Shadow's face is being shoved into the pavement by Espio, after resisting arrest and failing in his getaway attempt. **

**It is a harsh snap back to reality.**

"**We have acquired a warrant for your arrest, for questioning about the murder of Sonic the Hedgehog." ****Espio says, while he pulls Shadow's arms behind his back, and then restrains him with a pair of handcuffs. ****"Now per your rights as a citizen of Mobius city…"**

…

"**So when do you think the funeral will be?"**

**Tails pauses with a fork of scrambled egg brought halfway to his mouth. He gives Amy Rose a questioning look, from across the table, but says nothing.**

"**I mean, it's alright if I go to his funeral, right?" ****Amy twirls a strand of pink hair with her finger, nervous. ****"We could probably go together, too."**

**I should have known that this was what she had in mind. Tails thinks, and pretends to have not heard her for the second time, chewing on a slice of pancake absent-mindedly. **

**Amy does not buy it.**

"**Don't ignore me, Tails. I miss Sonic just as much as you do." ****She says with her eyebrows pulled into an angry knot. ****"Even if he weren't exactly on good terms, I have just as much a right to go to his funeral as you do!"**

**Tails rises from his seat, slamming down on the table. The vibrations ripple along its entire surface, so that Amy's dishes at the far side are made to rattle. ****"Jesus Christ Amy, what do you expect me to say?"**** She says nothing, but gazes at him, still shaken by the outburst. ****"Sonic couldn't stand you. That's why he had a restraining order put against you. Yet you still chased him, you still wanted him, even though he would turn you away every time." ****Tears are forming in Tails's eyes. ****"And here you are, when he's dead, talking about going to his funeral. Can't we just sit here, and have a peaceful breakfast together; without Sonic, for once?"**** The two-tailed fox rubs his forehead. He looks at Amy, expecting her to say something, but she just sits there, with a dazed expression on her face. **

"**It's not my fault that I loved Sonic, and still love him, Tails." ****She begins to say, in a crackling voice; trying to hold back tears. ****"So you have **_**no **_**right to judge me for it." ****She sniffs, as the tears stream down her cheeks.**

"**I'm not judging you, Amy." ****Tails says loudly, and swears under his breath. ****"I'm just saying that it's probably time you let him go."**

**Why is it always about Sonic…?**

**Amy gets up from the table. **

**As much in a mess of tears as she was, she attempts to make up a brave façade when she says, ****"Thank you for having me for breakfast, Tails, but I have business elsewhere, to tend to." **

**She starts for the kitchen past Tails, but he blocks her way.**

"**Let me go, Tails! Don't you think you've said enough already?"**** She hits him, and tries to dodge past him, but his resistance is strong, and this continues until, eventually, Amy falls onto her knees, sobbing loudly; uncontrollably. She throws her purse away and opens up her arms, then embraces Tails. He places a hand on her back, as she continues to cry into his shoulder. **

"**Amy, I'm sorry that it hurts. Really, I am. But it's something you had to hear."**** He pulls away from her a little, and they lock eyes. An atmosphere fills the room, and the space between the two. His heart beating rapidly, and seemingly overcome by this atmosphere, Tails says, ****"This is the beginning of a new way of life – our life, together."**

**They kiss.**


	8. ACT ONE: Part 7

**His name is Vector the Crocodile, and he is watching the interrogation of Shadow the Hedgehog take place. He does so from the observation deck upstairs, separated from the proceedings by a bulletproof, soundproof, chair-proof glass window. The conversation between Espio and Shadow crackles into here, through a speaker.**

**Espio can be seen pounding his fist unto the table. He then leans over the table, looking Shadow square in the face. **

"**Where were you on the night before Sonic's murder****?" He barks at the brooding mammal. **

**Shadow simply scoffs at him, and crosses his arms defiantly. ****"Don't waste your breath. The only person you'll be hearing from this afternoon is my lawyer." **

**Vector sighs and rubs at his forehead. **

**And with her involved, things could get sticky around here.**

**As if on cue, Espio can hear the sound of somebody in high heels making their way down the side hallway, toward the interrogation room. Shadow looks toward the door and then it opens, and Rouge the bat walks in. She peers at him from over the sunglasses she wore, then at Espio, frowning slightly. She takes a seat beside Shadow. **

**Espio promptly backs away from the table. He coughs into his hand and clears his throat a little, before continuing. **

"**So nice of you to join us, Rouge."**

"**Well, I had to come. What with my client calling me and telling me about how he was wrestled unto the sidewalk, handcuffed, and dragged to your office while on a morning stroll."**** Rouge takes off her sunglasses, and shoots Espio a deadly glare. ****"Where's your arrest warrant again, officer?"**

**Shadow nearly gets murdered by Knuckles one day, and today he's under questioning.**__**Rouge thinks, feeling frustrated, despite her calm exterior.**

**What would he do without me?**

**Espio throws an envelope he had been holding unto the table, startling both Shadow and Rouge.**

"**We have evidence that directly ties Shadow to the scene of the crime."**** Espio says. Rouge cautiously retrieves the envelope, and proceeds to open it. She glances at a photo she pulls out of it, and gasps. Espio paces back and forth about the room, as he continues, ****"That would be a footprint. And, when we ran it through our database, it showed to be a one hundred percent match to Shadow's – placing him at the scene of the crime."**** Espio stops walking and smirks cockily at Shadow, who is averting his eyes.**

**Rouge replaces the photo and pushes the envelope away. **

"**Be that as it may, you are yet to present an official warrant." ****She stands, lifting Shadow by his arm out of his chair, too. ****"So, my client and I will be leaving now…"**

"**No Rouge, I think we should stay." ****Shadow sits down again. Before she can protest, he adds, ****"Everyone needs to know once and for all that I didn't kill Sonic." **

…

**No more than an hour later, the door to the upstairs observation deck opens, and Vector is joined by a sober-looking Espio; his interrogation with Shadow having just wrapped up. He takes a seat across from Vector, the unmistakable scent of tobacco heavy on his breath, stinking up the tiny room as he exhaled. **

"**We've got a matching footprint, handprints, hair samples, and even…blood and stool samples, which are currently being tested."**** Espio says, giving Vector a sharp look. ****"This case is as good as solved, as soon as we get those results."**

"**Still, you could've just showed them our warrant, Espio." ****Vector says, frowning. ****"You might have had a chance at squeezing a confession out of him, if he stayed a while longer." **

**Espio sighs, ****"As much evidence as we have on him, I still have my doubts." ****He drums his fingers on the table, which Vector had long come to recognize as a sign of him being in deep thought. ****"If we ever do lock him up, it'll be because I am one hundred percent certain of his guilt. Not because I had a warrant, and managed to bully a confession out of him." **

**He pulls a plastic Ziploc bag out of his coat pocket, which contains a cellphone. To be precise, it is a **_**Blackberry**_** with a distinct, bright blue skin that had been recovered at the murder scene. ****"To think, that in the end, this one cellphone may be the difference between a lifetime in prison and walking free for our perp." **

**It is Sonic's cellphone.**

…

**Her name is Rouge the bat and she has just arrived at her apartment with Shadow. She closes the door behind her, throws her keys unto a dresser and looks at Shadow. He seems to be avoiding direct eye contact with her; instead looking around her dining room, scratching his head vacantly.**

**Shadow had lived his entire life in tenements and in the shadows of police cars – so, walking through Rouge's place for the first time, was like stepping into another world for him. Here, there is no peeling paint, or lopsided ceiling. Even the freshly polished mahogany wood flooring impressed him, and the fact that not a single cockroach or spider was in sight. Paintings of various scenes: the sky over a canyon, a basket of fruits before an open window looking unto a harbor, two smiling girls in a field, decorated the cream orange colored walls. **

"**Shadow, did you do it?" **

**Rouge's voice brings Shadow's wandering mind back to focus. **

**She had said on the drive that she had questions to ask him, and so he was not caught off guard. Still, he found himself struggling to think of a way to respond. **

"**No way." ****He finally says, shrugging, and pouting his lip like a stubborn child.**

"**All of that evidence they collected, though…"**

"**I just fucking said **_**no way**_**, Rouge." ****Shadow snaps and pounds his fist unto the dining room table, quieting her instantly. ****"You know how I feel about Sonic, and that there's no way I could have killed him, especially not on the day after we..." ****Shadow is broken off by his sobbing, and he covers his face with both of his hands, in an attempt to hide his tears. Rouge leans toward him, wanting to offer some comfort, but he ducks away from her reach. ****"I can understand if you think it was me, though. I'm not exactly the coolest guy on the streets, after all. I've been in a few fights, in my time." ****He falls down unto his knees, and sniffles incessantly.**

"**I never said that I think it was you, Shadow." ****Rouge says quietly, gently easing her way next to him. **

"**I don't care what the evidence points to. I know you, so I know that you loved Sonic, and although you two were once rivals, you would never have actually killed him. "**

**She places her hands unto the hedgehog's shoulders and turns him around, so that he is facing her. Uncovering his face, he looks unto her with eyes stained red by a combination of tears and many sleepless nights. ****"You're not as bad a guy as you think, Shadow. But, somebody is trying to frame you. And, until that **_**somebody**_** is found, you're staying here with me, okay?" ****Rouge says, squeezing his shoulder and smiling warmly. **

**Shadow cannot resist smiling too, in knowing that from this instant, Rouge would always have his back, and together, they would find a clear way out of this entire ordeal.**


	9. ACT ONE: Part 8

**His name is Miles Tails Prower, and he is just waking up from the night of his life. **

**It is a Monday morning, two days after the murder of Sonic the Hedgehog The sun is rising in the Mobius sky, but Tails is so exhausted after yesterday's roughhousing that he can only roll out of bed and unto the floor, pulling his sheet with him. **

**Lying on the floor is his discarded pair of jeans pants, which he picks up, dons carelessly; not even bothering to button them properly. He trudges his way to the bathroom, but stops for a second, and looks at his bed. For the first time, there was somebody else lying there other than himself – he sees the naked back of Amy Rose peeking out from underneath the bed sheets, asleep and glistening flawlessly. She was like an angel, in the faint rays of the morning sun, which shined through a slit in the curtain overhead, it seemed to him.**

**It's like a dream come true, almost.**__**Tails thinks to himself in a dreary haze, a faint, self-satisfied smile forming on his lips. **

**In the bathroom, he opens up the mirror cabinet over the sink, and takes out a razor and a can of shaving cream. As he closes the cabinet door, something catches his eye in the mirror's reflection. Something he could have never expected to see in even his wildest nightmares. **

**No, it can't be, there's no way! **

**He turns around slowly; reluctantly, to see – standing there, leaning against the wall next to the bath tub…**

…**none other than Sonic the Hedgehog.**

"**Enjoying yourself are you, 'ole buddy?" **

"**Sonic, w-w-what are you…?" ****Tails is frozen with fear. Sonic is striding toward him, his face contorting into an expression of sheer anger, as his eyebrows tighten and his jaw clenches. ****"Oh God please, if this is about Amy I promise I'll never talk to her again!"**** Tails gets down on his knees and begs. ****"I didn't mean for things to go this way. I'm sorry, man!" **

**Sonic heaves Tails off of the ground with a grip around his neck. ****"You think this is about Amy? Do you really think I give two shits about what you do to **_**her**_**?!"**** He pushes Tails with great force, throwing him against the kitchen sink. **

**Falling unto the ground and shaking from the impact, Tails shirks into the corner farthest from Sonic.**

"**Then why are you here? What did I do?" ****Tails raises his voice a few decibels, his heart pounding rapidly. **

**Sonic looks like he is about to answer, but is cut off by a surge of vomit. A projection of the disgusting green liquid rains down on Tails, and all he can do is cower and try to cover his face with his arms. ****"You know what you did, Tails."**** The flow of the vomit is slowed enough for him to speak, but minute amounts still drip down the sides of his mouth, like raindrops, following the passing of a great storm. He is shivering when he continues, saying, ****"You murdered me Tails. It's because of you that I have to suffer like this." **

**Tails can feel the vomit coating the fur of his arm. Seeping into the floor underneath him, like some foul creature with a mind if its own. The smell alone is terrible, but all Tails can do is cover his eyes with his hands and squirm helplessly against his corner, hoping and praying for dear life. He peeks between the spaces of his fingers…**

**The image of Sonic has disappeared.**

**Not only that, but there is no trace of the vomit that had only moments before covered the floor like a slick of oil. **

**It was almost as if Sonic had never been there at all.**

…

"**I don't think that Shadow did it."**

**Chris delivers his assessment on the case of Sonic's murder to Knuckles. They are sitting side by side at the table in Knuckles's living room. **

"**What makes you say that?" **

"**Knowing Espio, he would have had initial suspicions on Shadow's involvement in the murder. Yet, as the type who would only act out an arrest if the evidence were unanimous, seeing as Espio hasn't yet arrested Shadow…"**

"**Something must not match up." ****Knuckles rubs his chin, looking a tad disappointed. ****"Then the question remains, who killed Sonic?" **

**Who else but Shadow?**

"**How was the relationship between Sonic and Amy, leading up to his death?" ****Chris asks suddenly. He picks up his mug of coffee and takes a sip of the fresh, steaming liquid.**

"**Amy? They broke up years ago, but she wouldn't give up on the relationship, up to the day he died." ****The echidna leans back in the sofa, crosses his legs, and gazes up at the ceiling. ****"Apparently she was too clingy; asking where he was, who he'd been with – Sonic just couldn't take it anymore."**

**So they didn't make it together after all, huh?**__

"**Clingy, you say?" ****Chris looks sharply at Knuckles. ****"The break-up must have been devastating for her."**

**Knuckles looks at Chris and nods, but then stops midway, wearing a facial expression that is hard to explain but you could not miss, which serves to say '**_**I bet you're thinking what I'm thinking**_**'.**


	10. ACT ONE: Part 9

"**I hope you like your eggs sunny side up."**** Amy says with glee, as she lays out a plate of delicious-smelling breakfast delights in front of Tails, seated at the dining table. He is dressed in a suit and tie with a black suitcase next to him. **

**He is still a little shaken from his experience with Sonic earlier, and Amy is quick to notice. **

"**What's wrong, Miles?" ****Amy slips into a chair next to him, sporting one of his favorite T-shirts, long enough on her to hide the pair of bright red panties she is wearing. **

"**It's nothing, I swear." ****Tails picks up a fork, with a trembling hand. Noticing this, Amy reaches out a hand to try to comfort him, but he shrugs her away. **

"**It's okay; you can tell me all about it, honey." ****Amy says, not offended by the rude gesture.**

**Tails's ears perk up and he looks at her, somewhat shocked – he had never been called 'honey' before, after all, so he has no idea how to react. It sends a warm feeling coursing throughout his body, and he is all at once made to feel more comfortable about sharing his thoughts. Setting his fork down, after a few attempts he manages to look Amy straight in the eyes. She looks back at him, through slightly closed, tired eyes, that were nonetheless alert and patiently waiting for what he had to say.**

**But then Tails has his second thoughts.**

**No, I will not tell her about what happened; it's too soon to risk having her think I am completely insane.**

"**It's…work. It's been nothing but stress at the office lately."**** Tails rubs his forehead, to seem more convincing. ****"And frankly, I'd much rather spend some more time with the most beautiful girl I've ever met than sit in front of a computer all day." ****Tails makes an attempt to touch Amy's hand, but ends up ends up giving her a weird rub on the leg. **

**Amy beams, and hugs his neck, and with that, the subject of how Tails is feeling is not brought up again for the remainder of breakfast.**

…

**It is a slow day at the Chaotix Detective Agency. Since the embarrassing turn of events at Shadow's interrogation yesterday, Espio has reexamined the case, searching for potential new leads; searching for a new suspect. **

**He removes the cell phone recovered at the scene of Sonic's murder from the appropriately marked Ziploc bag. He felt the need to take a second look at the message which was the main cause of his doubt about Shadow's guilt. The text message, which had been sent to Tails on the day before the murder, detailed Sonic's intention to meet Shadow that very afternoon beneath the Mobius City Bridge. At first this made Shadow seem more suspicious. But alas, whereas the timing of the meeting was a cause for suspicion, the motive of the meeting did not seem to point toward anything sinister.**

**Sonic and Shadow were secret lovers. **

"**So Sonic and Shadow had a little fling going on, huh?" ****Vector bellows, his voice bouncing off the walls of the compact room.**

**Espio glances up from his work, and looks to see Vector sitting across the table with a cup of piping hot coffee in each hand. He offers Espio one and he gladly accepts it – oh, if thinking alone could wear a man out, he was **_**exhausted**_**!**

**Espio takes a sip of the coffee, and the graceful warmth passes through his lips and down his throat in one easy gulp. It was extra Black; just the way he liked it. **

"**We can't safely eliminate Shadow as a suspect, we still haven't received those results from the lab yet." ****Espio leans back in his chair and massages his temples. ****"And maybe those results will shed some light on how dysentery could possibly link in with all of this."**

"**Listen Espio, I think we should forget about the dysentery for now. Even if it does have a link to the murder, it didn't cause those laceration wounds or that blunt force trauma. What we should be focusing first and foremost is locking up whatever psychopath did this." **

**Espio can't help but grin. **

_**Leave it to the boss to keep me on track. **_

**Vector is, in fact, long retired from his days on the force, and has since settled into a new life of managing the calls and the case file documentation of the Chaotix Detective Agency which he had originally founded. It is a humble position, but one he has taken to with his own particular flair and keen attention to detail, that originally made him famous on the force. **

**Espio remembers something that the chief used to say to him. He would say, Espio, you're much sharper than I ever was, and you'll get farther than I ever did. It's my time to step down, it's your turn to shine now, kid. **

**What a swell guy! What a man to work for! Although Espio could no doubt serve the ****Mobius Police Department ****well with his skills and experience, he could not see himself working for anybody else other than Vector.**

"**Hey Charmy, that damn door's been ringin' for five minutes." ****Vector shouts, so that the bee can hear from downstairs. **

**You see, the door to the small detective's office would be locked tight from the inside throughout most of the day. So, should anybody attempt to make an entry during this time, there would emit a loud buzzing noise. Usually, it only took no more than a buzz or two to scare would-be visitors away, but this time was different. Somebody really needed to get inside.**

**Vector asks of his bumbling associate, still shouting, ****"Who's at the damn door, Charmy?" **

**Vector stops what he is doing for a moment; listening, as Charmy opens the door to the detective agency. He glances at Espio across the table and by the look in his eyes he can tell they are both concerned about the same thing – Charmy has been quiet for far too long.**

"**Charmy?" **

**His response is not immediate. ****"Uhh…chief there's somebody here to see you." ****He eventually says, sounding unsure.**

**Vector locks eyes with Espio again, who shrugs. Who could it possibly be, so early in the morning? Vector did not have many friends outside of his work, so it would have to be a client.**

**Curious, Vector, with Espio trailing behind him, makes his way down the flight of steps. On the first floor landing he meets with Charmy.**

"**So what's going on, Charmy?"**

"**He says he has information on the Sonic the hedgehog murder case. He's in the side room."**

**Vector's eyes widen – now this was the last thing he expected. It was a rare thing for the Chaotix detective team to get a tip on a case they are working on from an outsider. In fact, Vector thinks on the walk to the living room, how could somebody even be aware of the team's investigation into the case? They were private investigators, after all, so the whole affair seemed rather fishy. **

**Things only got stranger after meeting the fellow.**

"**Vector the crocodile; it is a pleasure to finally meet with you." ****He says, and turns to greet Espio similarly. **

**The unexpected guest rises from the sofa and shakes hands with Vector. He is unlike anybody the seasoned investigator has ever seen: a lanky hedgehog with snow white fur, with exceptionally long spikes, and crystal blue eyes. He speaks with a decidedly posh accent.**

"**I thought I would share with you some important information on the Sonic murder case."**

**Vector can sense Charmy coming up behind him, and waits until he settles himself.**

**For once, Vector decides to go against his better judgment and listen to what the visitor has to say about the confidential case.**

"**Well, now that you've got the whole group here, what do you got for us?"**

"**To put it simply…" ****He begins to say, and continues, with a now severe expression, ****"I know who killed Sonic the Hedgehog." **


	11. ACT ONE: Part 10

"**Are you awake, Shadow?"**

**Shadow finds himself lying awake in an unfamiliar bed, stark naked. It is the middle of the ni- two 'o' clock in the morning, according to the alarm clock on the dresser at his right.**

"**Huh? Is that…?" Shadow turns over, to face his partner in the bed. He finds himself looking into the eyes of Rouge the bat, lying beside him. He utters a pronounced gasp. "Rouge? What did we…do last**

**night?"**

**Rouge extends an arm over Shadow, and gently strokes his chest, one of her naked breasts pressed tightly against Shadow's chest. Leaning closer to him, she whispers into his ear, "Everything."**

**An awkward smile forms across Shadow's lips, but he can not shake the nagging feeling rising within him; the feeling that something was not right about this.**

**The curtains are drawn, so Shadow's surroundings are consumed by the impenetrable darkness of the early morning hours, except for the errant red light of the alarm clock display. **

**It certainly did not feel like this was his bedroom: smelling a delicate mixture of odors unfamiliar to him; the smell of**

**flowers (carpet freshener), lemons (pine sol) and hot sweat (sex). **

**The hedgehog felt groggy, as though he had run an entire marathon and then went to sleep.**

"**So we did it last night?" Shadow asks into the darkness, his voice squeaking a little out of how nervous he was.**

**Rouge says nothing, though. The bed trembles when she wiggles closer to Shadow, and clutches dearly unto his arm. A passing car's headlights light up the room for a brief second, but then the darkness returns again, unscathed.**

**A knot is beginning to form in Shadow's stomach.**

**Sure, he had occasionally considered Rouge as being more than a friend, but this all seemed so fast, it was making his head spin.**

"**Hey, Rouge, I think I'll get some fresh air. Maybe go for a jog in the park."**

…

**Station Square Central Park is lovely in the early morning hours. This is a fact that Shadow has been aware of since he was a child, when he would come here for a slice of serenity: after the picnickers, single mothers and barbeque-ers of the day had long since tucked into bed.**

**He is jogging along the sandy trail, and although he tries his hardest to stay focused on just the winding path ahead of him, Shadow's mind continually wanders to thoughts of Rouge.**

**It was a night just like this when they met, almost twenty years ago.**

…

**A younger Shadow is standing alone in the middle**

**of a basket court, dribbling a basketball. His eyes**

**are locked on the basket, but, having been**

**shooting hoops since the sun was still out, the**

**muscles in his arms are legs are sore and**

**thoroughly exhausted. He is about to take another**

**shot, nonetheless, when a commotion across the**

**street catches his attention.**

**A girl Shadow has never seen before has**

**stormed out of an apartment complex and is**

**crossing the road at a brisk pace, heading for his**

**basketball court.**

**Dismissing the incident as being just another day in**

**the projects, Shadow tries again to even out his**

**shot. After so much practice, he was going for a**

**half-court shot this time, so it was imperative that**

**he block out all distractions –**

"**Hey."**

**Shadow is caught off guard by the girl's greeting,**

**and misses the shot. Sighing, he turns to her,**

**looking unamused.**

"**I'm sorry, did I throw your shot off?" The girl says,**

**fidgeting with her fingers anxiously. "I can just go,**

**if you like…"**

**Shadow grunts in response and walks away, to**

**retrieve the basketball.**

"**I've seen you practicing here a couple of times. She says, smiling sheepishly. "You've really improved since you first started."**

**Rouge calls after him, causing him to pause halfway into lifting the basketball. He doesn't say anything to her, though, and reassumes his shooting position, hoping she would just go away. She doesn't.**

"**What's your name?"**

"**If I tell you, would you leave me alone?" Shadow snaps back, glancing at her from over his shoulder.**

**She feints a moment of contemplation, and shakes her head. Sighing, Shadow gives in to her presence.**

"**It's Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog."**

**He keeps his eyes on her just long enough to see her smile and take a seat, on the cold pavement of**

**the basketball court.**

"**You can call me Rouge."**

…

**Shadow the Hedgehog has been jogging nonstop since he left his apartment, and the physical strain of it was beginning to show. He is not as in shape as he used to be – there's another story about his past in which he sprained his ankle and missed an**

**entire month of his basketball practice, and never**

**fully returned to the game because of it - so he had definitely lost his 'A' game.**

**He collapses unto a park bench, breathing heavily, still thinking about Rouge.**

…

**After that night he met Rouge, she would come to the same basketball court any time he was there, just to watch him make his shots. For the first few nights, there would be little talk between the two, until one night, when she showed up looking exceptionally flustered about something.**

"**Hey Shadow, you live here right?" Without waiting for an answer, she continues, "Have you ever dreamed of achieving something more from your life? Of getting out**

**of this place?"**

**As usual, she is talking to Shadow's back; however, this time he was apparently interested enough in what she has to say to stop what he is doing.**

"**Yes." He answers simply, after some thought.**

"**Let me guess, you're out to be the next Michael Jordan." Rouge says in a snide tone.**

**Shadow shoots Rouge an inquisitive look. "Who's Michael Jordan, is he any good?"**

**Rouge opens her mouth as if to answer, but then promptly shuts it. After a while she says, grumbling, "Never mind; forget I said anything."**

**Shadow stands there, staring at Rouge, with a mystified look on his face. There was something different about the way she dressed tonight. Her clothing was skimpier and more revealing than the norm. Funny, Shadow thought, that I would come to expect a certain level of class from this strange girl.**

"**Aren't you cold, wearing something like that?"**

**Rouge has a sad expression on her face. Even the aloof Shadow could tell that something was weighing heavily on her mind.**

"**I've been homeless for weeks, so I had to find a way to get by."**

**Rouge looks up at Shadow expectantly, but his aura of indifference does not shift in the slightest.**

**He starts to dribble the basketball again.**

**Not intimidated by Shadow's cold shoulder, Rouge continues, "I'm trying to get into a junior college in the Academy District." She pauses, and sighs audibly. "My grades are good enough, but it's going to cost me an arm and a leg…"**

"**I'm not giving you any money." Shadow breaks in, attacking her with a piercing glare.**

**She looks startled, but does not cry.**

**For a while there is nothing but the sound of cars racing by on the highway up ahead; the only highway that exited into this side of Mobius. Alone together in the middle of that basketball court, hedgehog and bat; children of the projects, it seemed like they were trapped in this helpless void with little opportunity to ever escape it, no matter how hard they would struggle.**

**As if sensing this truth, an intense, new emotion floods all of Shadow's senses as he lines up his next shot.**

**Overcome by this feeling, Shadow says, "Because you have a dream Rouge."**

**Shadow makes his shot from half court – what may well have been his thousandth one that night.**

"**So you're going to have to give it all you've got to make it come true."**

**He makes the basket, with a dull thump, and the ball falls back onto the court; rebounds.**

**"Ain't nobody gonna help you."**


	12. ACT ONE: Part 11

It is a crisp, breezy Monday morning. Knuckles the Echidna has parked his truck on the corner of Acorn Street and Ocean Bay road. Sitting next to him, in the front passenger seat, is Chris. With a pair of binoculars in hand, he is in the process of surveying one double-story condominium of the many lining either side of the street. They all looked similar in design, but were painted in different shades of "sea" colors varying from aquamarine to light yellow. What could possibly be so special about this _one_ condo?

"Still nothing?" Knuckles grunts while tapping his muscular fingers on the steering wheel impatiently. "Just one of these houses is probably worth more than I make in five years, and it kind of pisses me off."

He looks around. It is still early, and every now and then a man or fox or raccoon in a suit emerges from one of the condominium, dressed in a business suit complete with a tie, or in one case, even, a high-ranking military officer's uniform.

"Look, there's our guy." Chris says, handing the binoculars over to Knuckles, who had been examining a big-busted echidna in her underwear waving out a goodbye from an open doorway.

He looks, and sees that Tails has emerged from the front door of the condominium the two had been watching for almost an hour. He is walking at a brisk pace toward his parked Toyota Hybrid. There is the brief bleep of his car alarm being deactivated, then as he opens the car door-

"Wait, who is that? Amy?" Knuckles shares an eyepiece with Chris.

They watch as Amy runs down the same path behind Tails, and tackles him with an open arm hug before he can fully get into the car.

Chris leans away from the binoculars, rubbing his chin in thought.

"What could Amy possibly be doing at Tails's house?" Chris says primarily to himself as Tails enters the car and drives it out unto the street.

"Hey, shouldn't we tail him?" Knuckles starts, gripping the keys in the ignition.

"No. I think we should have a talk with Amy, first."

...

Amy Rose slowly eases the front door shut behind her. She glances her fingers along the edge of the stack of fresh Mobian bills she had just managed to coax out of Tails.

What an idiot! This was too easy. Amy thinks, as she tucks the money into the bra she wore underneath her T-shirt.

She plops unto the couch in the living room, sits there with her legs sprawled open lazily.

_Leather. It wouldn't be my first choice but still very classy, Tails_, she thinks.

From that position, Amy Rose reaches for the remote controller set on the coffee table and begins the arduous process of flipping through a menu of over a thousand channels.

She stops at a news program that grabs her interest.

"City Hall, and Mayor Chandler remain under fire for the quality of the Mobian water supply." The news anchor reports stiffly, with the image of rioting forest animals wielding picket signs superimposed in the upper right corner of the screen. "According to leading scientists who have analyzed traces of the city's tap water, it has an abnormally high lead content, which may be putting the city..."

There comes a sudden knocking at the door, and it prompts Amy to turn the television off before the newscaster can finish.

"He isn't here right now, you just missed him." She says, with more than a hint of annoyance in her tone.

The voice of Chris responds, saying, "It's Chris. Chris Thorndyke. And Knuckles is here with me. We'd like to talk to you for a bit."

Amy is startled by the announcement. She tiptoes gingerly toward the door. "But why? About what?"

"It's about Sonic." Knuckles says gruffly, oblivious to the shocked expression on Amy's face.

"Oh, in that case sure, come on in..." She says, as she backs down the hall and into the kitchen with her hand gliding against the wall, until it finds the handle of something. She grasps unto it firmly.

Her name is Amy Rose and little do Knuckles and Chris know, but she is now armed and dangerous.

...

"This better not be some kind of a joke." Espio says, backing away from the visitor who calls himself Silver. "This isn't a game, you know. So don't waste our time."

Vector cuts in. "Relax Espio, he could be legit. Besides, the public has been pretty shut up about things since day one." He turns to Silver. "So, who do you think killed Sonic the Hedgehog?"

"Not think. Know." He says quickly and glares at Espio, who is standing off to the side with his arms crossed, eyeing him with suspicion. "It was Shadow the Hedgehog."

"Preposterous!" Espio exclaims, swinging his arm emphatically. "We retrieved certain samples from the crime scene that are pointing us to somebody else." He pauses for a moment. "Not Shadow."

Silver appears unshaken by the outburst when he says, "You can choose not to believe me and wait until all of the facts check out, but what the complete and infallible truth of the matter is that Shadow murdered Sonic the Hedgehog."

Espio's phone cellphone to ring suddenly, causing the steely Chaotix detective to jump. He takes it out and upon examining the caller I.D., retrieves his jacket from a hanger and opens the front door to the detective agency.

"What the hell, Espio? Doesn't this seem kind of a big deal?" Vector bellows, but with a sarcastic grin on his face.

"Sorry. This one's important." Espio says then ducks behind the door. "I'll leave you to deal with this character."

...

Meanwhile, a certain black hedgehog is practicing his free throws at a basketball court somewhere in the crime-ridden underbelly of Mobius City.

Shadow carefully lines up his next shot. He shoots with a grunt, but the ball is deflected off of the rim. It bounces away.

_Klunk, klunk, klun- _The sound of it hitting the asphalt repeatedly comes to an abrupt stop. Shadow looks up and is shocked by who he sees standing there, just a few feet away, holding the basketball in two white gloved hands.

"Sonic?" Shadow starts, his voice cracking out of fear. "It can't be. You're dead!"

Despite this fact, Shadow found it difficult to dismiss the creature standing before him as being anyone other than Sonic the Hedgehog. Nevertheless Shadow could vaguely sense that something was different about this hedgehog. Perhaps it was the lack of Sonic's usual smile and positive demeanor, instead replaced by an unnatural frown and two expressionless, unblinking eyes. Or it may have been the overall contrast of his appearance as opposed to his usual bright colors. The blue of his spikes was more dull, and even the red of his shoes seemed lifeless. Whatever it may be, it filled Shadow with a sense of dread rather than joy in seeing his old friend reduced to this.

This apparition of Sonic, while holding the basketball under one arm, uses the other to point in a direction. Shadow's gaze can not help but follow.

He did not see anything unusual, or even remotely odd about the are he had spent the first seventeen years of his life. Rows of ugly grey tenements and apartment complexes, with balconies draped by clotheslines and occasionally occupied by lounging, frowning locals. He picks up the faint smell of burning diesel in the air, and traces it to a van labelled "Aqua Mobi Distilled Water" parked on the curb with its engine still humming noisily. Shadow recognizes the sound of a one-hit wonder of days passed playing somewhere in the background, and it brings back memories. It was just another day in the projects.

"Hey, what are you point pointing-"

_KLUNK. KLUNK. _

Startled, Shadow looks again to where Sonic had been standing, but stood no longer. It seemed like he had vanished as quickly as he appeared.

The disowned basketball bounces until it hits the chain link wall, then rolls into a corner.


	13. ACT ONE: Part 12

"Who are you calling now? Get the hell over here and help." Knuckles hollers at Chris.

Upon entering Tails's house, the two were met by a barely conscious and feverish Amy Rose, collapsed on the floor holding a frying pan. Chris had immediately dialed 9-11 while Knuckles struggled to provide some emergency assistance to her.

"Something's coming out of her mouth." Knuckles says as he lays her flat on her back, against the cold hardwood. "Jesus Christ she's puking. Get me a towel or something."

Nodding, Chris Thorndyke runs down the hall and through Tails's bedroom, stopping for a moment to examine the messy state of his bed, in an otherwise impeccable room.

"Ah, so that's what this is about." He says under his breath, then turns and enters the bathroom to find that towel.

...

Vector retrieves a roll of tobacco from his back pocket, unwraps it, then promptly spits it out into a nearby trash can. He is seated on a stool at the kitchen counter of the Chaotix Detective Agency, Charmy floating and the strange visitor still present, surrounding him.

"You're a federal agent, aren't you?" He says, directed at Silver. "Don't worry, you can tell me."

Silver reveals his badge and identification without any hesitation. "We should share our facts. This thing is beginning to spread.

Charmy sneaks away from the pair and turns on the nearby television, which is turned to a local news channel.

"...emergency city council meeting being held on what is now believed to be dysentery outbreak in Mobius." The newscaster says, and the screen is then possessed by a crowd of hawking rodents with video cameras huddled around the steps of the bright and polished city council building.

"It's all over the news now." Vector grumbles.

"We're beginning to think it's a form of biological warfare. But who? And why?" Silver questions aloud, stroking his chin thoughtfully. Then he looks at Vector. "And have you established any link between the contraction of dysentery and Sonic the Hedgehog's murder?"

"No. That seems like a dead end." Vector signals to Charmy, who briefly removes himself into the next room, and returns shortly after with a plain manila folder tucked under his arm. He hands this folder to Vector, who opens it and removes a couple of photographs from within then slides across the counter to Silver. He takes them up and looks at them.

"Those were taken at the crime scene. We have footprints, DNA, blood and even fecal samples that tie Shadow to the scene but something still doesn't check out."

"The green substance isn't really vomit, is it?"

"Charmy ran a check. It seemed less biological. More chemical. Created."

Silver places the photographs back unto the table. He somehow looks somewhat annoyed by this information.

"A penny for your thoughts, detective?" says Vector.

The snow white hedgehog steps away, his arms crossed behind his back. Something was obviously concerning him. "Well, there have been similar cases like this in other cities across the board. The bizarre green substance. The gruesome killing. The dysentery outbreak. Footprint. Fecal. Blood samples."

He turns around again. There is a steely look in his eyes; the kind of look only a detective who feels he is on the verge of cracking a case can really possess.

"But we also have video evidence of one of the crimes being committed. "

...

The doors of the dispatched ambulance slam shut, with Amy Rose laid out on a stretcher within. Chris and Knuckles are conversing with a member of the medical personnel in Tail's front lawn when a familiar Toyota Hybrid pulls up to the curb.

"What the hell is going on here?" Tails says when he emerges from the driver's seat, and approaches the two. "Where's Amy?"

The medical personnel re-enters the ambulance and it begins to pull out into the street. Tails makes a motion to go after it but Knuckles stops him.

"They think it might be dysentery. Like in the news."

Tails falls to his knees.

"I'm sure she'll be fine." Knuckles adds, placing a hand on his friend's trembling shoulder.

Tails casts him a glare. "What were you two doing here, anyway?"

Knuckles exchanges looks with Chris, who nods.

"We want to ask you some questions. It has to do with Sonic."


End file.
